Student Association President Travis Nemmer is pleased with this semester's entertainment.
It only cost SA a little above $500,000, he said.
This month, UB is hosting not only Spring Fest, featuring Kendrick Lamar and Steve Aoki, but also a Bob Dylan concert. SA funded the events with the $94.75 mandatory student activity fee that each student pays in the beginning of the semester.
Nemmer said he has been getting nothing but positive responses since the lineup announcement. Spring Fest includes two headliners and four openers, making the event twice as big as Fall Fest 2012. SA spent approximately $280,000 on Spring Fest, according to its general ledger. It was one of the least expensive fests in recent years, allowing Nemmer to book Dylan for a separate concert, he said.
However, some students are still dissatisfied with SA's selections. Some believe $500,000 is too much to be spending. Others think SA will focus on making the money spent on Dylan's concert back and there won't be enough student tickets.
"Do I spend $45 on an advanced sale ticket or do I hope that I get there earlier than the rest of the students that are as pumped about seeing an American icon as I am?" said senior civil engineering major George Kalkowsky in an email. "It puts students in a difficult situation. If you're connected in SA, though, you don't have to worry about anything - a staffer could get you a guaranteed ticket."
Nemmer said SA staffers are not receiving any preferential treatment with tickets.
SA had set aside 2,000 tickets for the public - which sold out in two to three weeks - and 4,500 for students on a first-come-first-serve basis. The sale generated about $100,000, according to Nemmer. The organization spent approximately $235,000 on Dylan's concert, according to SA's general ledger.
The students' preferences for entertainers did not impact SA's decisions. After students expressed dissatisfaction with booking The Fray for Fall Fest 2011, SA stopped considering outside opinions, angering students.
"I would like to see my money go toward something I have a choice in!" said senior psychology major Kaylee Cirrito in an email. "Why can't undergrads vote on who they want?"
Drake was the students' first choice in a survey SA conducted in Fall 2011. The Fray was number eight on a list of 19 acts. Due to the artists' availability and SA's budget, the organization had to settle. Students believed their representatives had done a poor job planning the event, as previously reported by The Spectrum.
SA Treasurer Justin Neuwirt claims the survey method sets the organization up to fail.
"The students are going to always want the greats - Jay-Z, Drake, Eminem, Billy Joel, etc.," Neuwirt said in an email. "Well, if that is who came up on our survey, we would inevitably disappoint the masses."
He would love to book Billy Joel but feels big-name performers are unrealistic on a college campus.
Even with a "limited" budget, SA was able to please some students with the variety the two concerts bring to UB this semester.
Maurice Carpenter, a junior health and human services and psychology major, is excited for the Spring Fest lineup, which he considers a huge step up for SA's choices in terms of "genre, artist and popularity."
"I'm glad I have another year left here," Carpenter posted on the event's Facebook page.
The lineup has revitalized his faith in SA's event-planning abilities, he said. However, he still wants the survey brought back next year and is displeased with the amount spent on the two events. He believes the organization could have done better in regard to Dylan's performance.
Binghamton University's Spring Fling costs approximately $250,000 on average, according to Eric Larson, the vice president of finance for the university's SA. That cost covers the entire event, including a carnival with a Ferris wheel, food and the concert. Binghamton booked Yellowcard this year.
SUNY Geneseo's SA had a $130,000 concert budget on which it booked MGMT, according to its concert coordinator, Jenny Keller.
Carpenter would have preferred Geneseo's event to Dylan's concert because he believes MGMT is currently more popular and relevant, especially for the price. He sees Dylan's performance as geared toward an older audience.
Others see versatility in this month's concerts that they haven't seen in recent years.
"Bob Dylan is also a legend and the greatest songwriter of all time," said senior media study major Andrew Pawluk in an email. "I think everyone can get something out of these two concerts, whether you like rock, hip hop or dance music."
Dylan is performing at Alumni Arena on Friday. Spring Fest is scheduled at the same venue on Sunday, April 14.
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